POP3 - Account Details

This facility is used to collect messages from another mail server - typically your ISP - for distribution by Mailtraq to your local users.See Configuration Tips below.

The dialog is accessed in the Mailtraq Console,in the left column, Mail section - Remote POP3 Mailboxes, or at Options | Remote POP3

Right-click to access the Properties dialog shown to the right.

Either select an existing account Properties or Add a new one to see the following:

Account Details tab

This tab appears on the POP3 Account Properties dialog and is used to configure the general properties of an account.

POP3 ServerEnter the name of the POP3 Server used for mail collection from the POP3 account. The standard port for POP3 is 110.If a non-standard port is specified by the ISP it may be entered in the box provided.

POP3 AccountEnter the user name of the POP3 account.

Note:For example, Fred Bloggs might have a POP3 account with an address of fred.bloggs@myisp.com. The user name of this account, therefore, is fred.bloggs and that should be entered into the POP3 Account edit box. The address, fred.bloggs@myisp.com, is the address which Fred would give out to other email users so that they could send messages to him. The server address of a POP3 account is usually different, however, and Fred must collect his mail from the server address not from myisp.com. In this hypothetical case, the POP3 server address is pop3.myisp.com which is the address which should be entered into the POP3 Server edit box. The correct server address is usually provided separately by the service provider and is not always obviously related to the address to which mail is sent.

Tip:...but, when connecting to some ISP mail servers you need to enter your full Account name,not just the Username. Say: example@hotmail.com not just example

When Mailtraq contacts the remote POP3 server the POP3 Account and POP3 Server entries are combined to create the correct address from which to collect waiting messages.In the above example that would be:fred.bloggs@pop3.myisp.com or fred.bloggs@hotmail.com@pop3.live.com That address is also displayed by Mailtraq in the object listing in the console.

PasswordThe password for the remote POP3 account should be entered here.

SSL CollectionEnable the SSL checkbox to provide support for SSL/TLS connections where specified by the remote mail server or ISP (eg Gmail collections). Change the default Port:110 to 995, or as specified by your ISP.

Older Mailtraq ConsolesEnter the POP3/S port specified by the ISP with a colon, for example:secure.myisp.com:995 or pop3.gmail.com:995

Leave Mail on ServerCheck this option in order to:-

Share the account with others

Collect mail from the account at different sites (e.g. both at home and work).

Or simply as a safety precaution

In each of those cases it is then the service provider's responsibility to expire mail in the account but mail can still be deleted on that account from the console.

The Leave Mail On Server option works effectively only if the remote POP3 server supports the UIDL command. If in doubt, the appropriate service provider should be consulted. The Leave Mail On Server option may still be enabled but it is possible that some messages might not be downloaded whilst others might be duplicated.

Automatically delete after...If this option is selected Mailtraq deletes any mail left on the remote POP3 server as a result of the Leave Mail on Server option automatically after the number of days set in the edit box.

Mirror MailboxThis feature will keep track of deleted emails locally with the selected mailbox and on the remote POP3 server. Deletion of files on the local Mailtraq mailbox will propagate to the remote POP3 server and deletions on the remote POP3 server will propagate to the local Mailtraq account.

Local Area NetworkIf this option is checked Mailtraq assumes that an online connection need not take place in order to connect to the remote POP3 account.

Download Smallest FirstThis option is enabled by default. Mailtraq will download messages in size order - smallest first. This is to allow the delivery of small messages without waiting for large messages to be delivered first. If this option is deselected the messages will be downloaded in the natural order (unsorted) of the remote mail server. This is often the date and time order, but is not necessarily so. This option was introduced in build 2118

Check mailbox every...Enter the time in minutes after which Mailtraq should connect to the remote POP3 server and check for new mail

Last CollectionThis information-only field displays the last date and time of mail collection.

Configuration Tips

This facility makes it very quick and easy to move from an existing ISP based email system to one under your own control. The Collector works in a similar way to an ordinary email client - collecting the messages from your ISP and distributing them to mailboxes within Mailtraq, from which the messages are collected by your local Users' email clients.

However, wherever it is possible, you will have a much more efficient email system if you configure your domain records so that Mailtraq receives mail for your domain direct from the Internet by SMTP. Please read more about this here: www.mailtraq.com/guide

You will have more options available to you for spam control and will avoid possible problems with multiple copies of CC and BCC mail that can occur when you distribute mail collected by POP3.

Note - Once messages have been downloaded by Mailtraq they will not be downloaded again even if the option 'Leave Mail on Server' has been selected. This is normally the desired action (to avoid receiving multiple copies of the same message).In some circumstances - say, a downstream data loss - you may wish to 're-download' previously collected mail. There are two ways to force this action:

1.) you can either mark the individual files for download again (select, right click, "Download")

2.) with Mailtraq shut-down remove the database\mail\pop3\<mailbox>.* files and then restart Mailtraq.

Windows Connection Limits

The Windows TCP/IP stack now limits the number of simultaneous incomplete outbound TCP connection attempts (half-open connections) in non-server editions. Windows Tech ReportAfter the limit has been reached, subsequent connection attempts are dropped and an error noted.

This means that Windows can prevent more than a set number of Remote POP3 Connections at any time. Mailtraq will automatically work with the queued connections to try to ensure that all accounts are collected from in as timely a manner as possible. The actual limit varies by the edition of Windows - XP Professional, for example, allows about 9 connections - some Vista editions allow only 5. Also, keep in mind that if your machine is not a dedicated mail server then other applications may be using TCP connections so reducing the number available to Mailtraq.

Limiting Simultaneous POP3 Collections

In some environments it may be necessary to limit the number of simultaneous connections to the remote POP3 server. You may modify the 'system.cfg' file to control the number of connections. From Mailtraq build 2382

Shut down Mailtraq.Locate the system.cfg file The default location is:C:\Program Files\Mailtraq\database\configurationModify the entry: MaxPop3Clients=10 to your desired number.Save, and then restart Mailtraq.

NOTE: Mailtraq must be shut down when manually modifying the system.cfg file, to avoid configuration corruption.